As I approach retirement, I have spent an enormous time studying Medicare. We are the only nation on earth with such a complicated system, and even if you think you are smart there a lot of mistakes to be made. And the biggest of all would be choosing Medicare Advantage! If you are around my […]
I previously installed a Renogy 40 amp DC-DC charger. It worked fine, but had limited settings and no Bluetooth. My new batteries want a low absorption charge set at 13.8 volts which the old Renogy can’t accommodate. Also I would like to have a reverse DC-DC charger to keep my Mercedes battery charged while parked. […]
We travel with a backup refrigerator that is hugely useful, depending on our mood, as a wine/drink cooler, holding area while we defrost the big fridge, or, in a pinch, a second usable refrigerator in case the big one fails. We previously had an Alpicool Refrigerator which works great and fits behind the drivers seat. […]
I previously had replaced my junk Sprinter radio with a Pioneer Avic-W8400NEX. This worked out pretty well. It had wireless Apple Carplay and was pretty advanced at the time. That thing was damn expensive! After 4 years of use, I was *mostly* satisfied. But, since riding in Teslas I have grown fond of the oversized […]
This will be my third Lithium upgrade in the same van. I’m unwilling to sacrifice any more space or weight, so I do upgrades as technology improves. First it was (2) Battleborn’s, then (3) Renogy. All performed fabulously (some Renogy hiccups were just rough software and resolved themselves after cell balancing), and met my expectations, […]
Read More… from Discover DLB-GC12-12V Lithium Blue 12V 200Ah Batteries
I’ll admit I was initially a Starlink skeptic for RV usage. Its heavy, big, uses a lot of current, and until recently can’t be used in motion. (While you might be able to use in motion now, you would have to heavily modify the dish to lay it flat). That said, we realized that every […]
I regularly read posts about either being stuck with broken jacks or slides, or, people who travel without either for fear of being stranded. And I’m totally in that camp of not wanting the embarrassment and inconvenience of being stranded if possible. So I wanted to practice retracting my jacks manually. There are several excellent […]
In order to install Starlink in an RV you are probably going to want custom cables so that you can mount and dismount the dish easily and neatly. There are lots of articles on the Internet about this. Since the cable is a standard shielded Cat 5e (with large 23 gauge wire for dish power) […]
Ever since I upgraded to an Isotherm Compressor Refrigerator I have found my outside propane switch even more annoying. I get that its good to have an outside switch – in case of a leak or fire, but couldn’t LTV have also installed one inside also? Even when I had my absorption refrigerator, with hookups […]
June 24 2022 Update: Now that the RV plan came out I switched to RV so I could pause at times. So If you plan to use at home the convoluted instructions below are still correct, but for RV there is no service address and its a simpler signup. That said you may now have […]
When planning for retirement I found I was bombarded with misleading information about Social Security, ranging from mildly to totally wrong. The first – screaming headlines suggest that “social security is going broke”. This is a widely held view that is completely false. Social security will never go broke because it is widely used and […]
We never liked the galley closet in our Unity CB. We already have a closet near the bedroom, and the front closet just filled up with junk that spilled out. So we put in plywood cherry shelves. Now we can at least neatly organize it. Simple project. We bought home depot cherry plywood (special ordered […]
The Jensen JWM9A has to be one of the most loathsome devices in my RV. In case you aren’t familiar with it, JVC took a very low end auto radio, and mated a huge control panel to make it look impressive, and then sold it an exorbitant price. As if that wasn’t enough, this was […]
Once I completed my 3000 watt inverter installation I started looking for a soft start for the AC. While my inverter was capable of starting and running the AC even without it, its kinder on the batteries and everything else not to spike the current. And being able to run the AC more reliably from […]
Dec 2022 Update: The Renogys worked great after a few kinks were worked out and have been reliable. However I recently upgraded for more power to a pair of Discover Lithium 200 Batteries. The rest of this post is still relevant about installing the Xantrex, busbars, switch, etc. I only later updated the batteries themselves. […]
Read More… from Rewire RV with Xantrex 3000 XC Pro and (3) Renogy 100Ah 12V Bluetooth Batteries
Its been over a year since I installed the Isotherm Cruise 219 in my RV. I just completed a 3 week trip out west and I thought it would be a good time to record some thoughts. So here, in random order, is what I learned so far: Refrigerator Drainage I originally totally missed the […]
I’ve had a Globalstar GSP-1700 sat phone for a long time. Globalstar has a tortured history. Once a great service, it experienced some satellite failures and the service went to hell. It was so bad that to get the phone to work you had to consult a chart for when the next working satellite would […]
Finally! TPMS. And no, you don’t need to install Borg stems! Here is the background: Many people buy DIY TPMS off the Internet, and have their stems crack on the way home or after a short trip. The reason is usually due to either a rubber valve stem, or more often, a dually valve stem […]
Read More… from TST 507 Series 6 Flow Thru Sensor TPMS System with Color Display
My RV came with a propane regulator (Fairview) known for early failures, and sure enough, like clockwork, it failed before 2 years passed. The symptom was propane smell around the rear of the RV; but others report a reduced gas pressure as the first sign. Actually now that I think about it it may have […]
A while back I bought an RV refrigerator temperature monitor. That actually worked quite well, and was cheap and reliable. But, I’m always wanting more! The old monitor would record the high and low between resets, and the current temperature, but that was about it. With my new RV compressor refrigerator, I’m wanting more information. […]
2023 Update: I have since installed Discover Batteries and a Rego DC-DC charger. I still use the dash switch, but I eliminated the solenoid and IRD. Many people who have switched to Lithium, particularly with more than 200 AH of capacity, have installed a DC-DC charger. But I am not quite ready. They steal some […]
I previously installed a Cradlepoint IBR900 Router. I was reasonably satisfied with it. It wasn’t a perfect experience though. The registration process (required to manage remotely) was chaotic and took numerous calls and trouble tickets to be resolved. It immediately started crashing due to router bugs. Again, resolved through support tickets. It was a firmware […]
This is one of those super trivial upgrades that I almost didn’t write up, except its really useful. My Unity CB had a dual USB socket behind the drivers seat. That was useful. My security cam stays plugged in there. But I really wanted a cigarette lighter plug there as well. I have a backup […]
Just like clockwork, after about two years of ownership I noticed my alternator stopped charging my batteries reliably. Its always a little unreliable on my Lithium batteries. (I count on the solar to top them off.) But in this case the alternator completely stopped charging. (Although sometimes it would). From posts on the internet I […]
When I ordered my RV I made the big mistake of ordering it with 400 watts solar, a costly option. It made sense as it was the most you could get and LTV must install the best, right? Well as I learned in time it was actually awful. The solar controller was a cheap PWM […]
Stuff happens, and just about anybody who travels in an RV extensively will have refrigerator problems sooner or later. Or maybe you just want a truly tiny refrigerator you can use just about anywhere. In my case, it was a refrigerator failure. While waiting for parts I needed something to keep some minimal items cold. […]
Santee SC is pretty nice as state parks go. Its convenient to 95, full hookups (better to have AC in the steaming July heat), and water and hiking activities. But this was just a quick stopover for us. We did a few miles on the trail but in the July inferno and rain that was […]
Update October 2022 – Looks like Vantop disappeared from Amazon. There are many there that appear to be the same manufacturer, but Wolfbox seems popular and well reviewed. See Amazon link at bottom of this article for Wolfbox. For my RV (and most others unless you have a really small van) the rear view mirror […]
The best way to describe the Venus GX is remote control. It will basically export all your Victron devices to the internet, assuming you have either a router or hotspot in your RV. There are two main reasons i wanted this. First, while the RV is being stored, I can keep an eye on its […]
Note: This is an older post and I have subsequently upgraded to 300 AH of Renogy Lithium and a Xantrex 3000 XC Pro Inverter. Its like a domino. Each thing I kick in the RV causes some new deficiency to be noticed, that either wasn’t there before or had escaped my attention. After all my […]
(Pictured on the left is the original Dometic refrigerator. On the right is my replacement.) Also see my postscript article where I summarize the experience once I got things ironed out! My RV came with an industry standard Dometic refrigerator. I won’t spend a lot of time on the deficiencies as they are well known. […]
So this is one of those newfangled devices that you have to stop and explain as it didn’t exist just a year or two ago. It’s a Lithium “generator”, meaning it works like a portable generator only it uses a battery instead of gas. They haven’t made huge inroads yet, because for a homeowner a […]
This comes up online so often online that arguably its comparable to, “Cats or Dogs?” But not really. Each has their own advantages and disadvantages, so its worth considering what you plan to do with it. Its important to understand that RV diesel generators are not the same thing as the legendary commercial diesel generators […]
Note: This is an older post and I have subsequently upgraded to 300 AH of Renogy Lithium and a Xantrex 3000 XC Pro Inverter. The solar charge controller still works great, I just moved it around! My new RV came with what I thought was pretty good solar. Only as I learned, it was just […]
Once in a while something comes along that really is a good deal, and this is it! Visible.com is a new kind of phone service that uses Verizon towers for an ultra cheap $25 a month, no taxes or fees. Note to get the $25 a month discount you have to join a so called […]
So it turns out many RVs (and for sure our Sprinter) have pretty massive “vampire” loads. If you park my van, even for a fairly short period (say 10 days) you could come back to a battery that’s depleted. That’s because the house charger will not charge the chassis battery from AC, and the chassis […]
Note: This is an older post and I have subsequently upgraded to 400 AH of Discover Lithium and a Xantrex 3000 XC Pro Inverter. A few people have asked me why I didn’t simply purchase more Battleborns. Answer is: No Bluetooth. This new technology lets you monitor the health of individual batteries – very important […]
Sooner or later you’ll need a water jug while camping. For instance while camping at Yellowstone with no hookups we occasionally used the nearby spigot to top off the fresh water tank without moving. Most of the time though, its unneeded so this was the perfect solution. It stays folded 99% of the time and […]
We don’t use a table or chairs a whole lot. But from time to time we will sit outside and have a snack or wine. I wanted a table that takes up next-to-nothing in space when not in use, and this really fit the bill. The top and legs roll up into a tiny case […]
Look Ma no plug! When you travel in a 25 foot RV, real estate is scarce. We previously had a small toaster oven. But even that little guy required a generator start and had to be stowed in an outside department. So back to the stone age. This little thing makes great toast in 30 […]
Note: This is an older post and I have subsequently upgraded to 300 AH of Renogy Lithium and a Xantrex 3000 XC Pro Inverter. So, I will be replacing my refrigerator with a compressor refrigerator (more on that soon). The first step in doing that is to expand the battery life by going Lithium (more […]
We learned quickly that Bottled water is an unwanted and expensive chore. We are water bigots and at home drink RO (Reverse Osmosis) or bottled water to get rid of chlorine or other chemicals But then we realized we already have double filtration in the the RV (house filter + external hose mounted filter) so […]
One of my gripes about by new RV is that it came with a junk Jensen DVD player. I call it junk because, seriously , a DVD player in 2019? No Blu-Ray? It’s hard to understand why a garbage product like the Jensen exists. At the wholesale level a raw Blu-Ray device probably costs less […]
I quickly learned that RV refrigerators REALLY suck. I already knew that my spare refrigerator at home in my garage in Florida suffered in the 90 degrees + heat. But what I didn’t know is that RV refrigerators use a different technology than a home compressor fridge. In a nutshell, the freezer is generally marginally […]
Ok this is an absurdly simple item, hardly even worth mentioning… I learned of it while watching the YouTube channel “HoboTech”. This chronicles some middle age guy who gives up his dayjob, converts an old RoadTrek, and travels the country. In between, he offers a lot of great tips for the DIYer. So one of […]
UPDATE 21-Feb-2021 The Cradlepoint worked well but I put in a new router and antenna. This article is still mostly relevant for drilling the roof and installing in general. We travel in our RV to get away from the city, and enjoy remote places. That said, I have a job, and I need to be […]
Sooner or later, if you have an RV, you are going to discover that some of the nicest places you would want to camp don’t have any cell service. None. Nada. Now, some people might think that’s just fine. But I have a job, and can take emergency calls round the clock, even on vacation. […]
Note: This is an older post. I’ve upgraded everything since then. Nowadays you also have the choice of a smart shunt from Victron with no display. While that might be tempting because the Bluetooth app is way more convenient, reports are that a very short range Bluetooth is used on the smart shunt, so I’m […]
DEC 2022 Update: The Pioneer worked pretty well but after 4 years I replaced with an Alpine Halo 11 iLXF511. This article is still relevant for some installation issues but the Alpine was much easier to install – basically plug-and-play since Critchfield offers a custom wiring harness. Times have changed I never used the DVD […]
Being new to RVing, all I knew about dump tanks was summed up in movies like Christmas Vacation or RV. I almost skipped getting an RV entirely, over the potential disasters that await. Oh, did I say I was kinda squeamish about this? Back in the day I had a (very) small yacht. It had […]